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European Commission Spokesman's Briefing for 98-06-29
From: EUROPA, the European Commission Server at <http://europa.eu.int>
MIDDAY EXPRESS
News from the Spokesman's midday briefing
Nouvelles du rendez-vous de midi du Porte-Paroleb
29/06/98
CONTENTS / CONTENU
[01] EU foreign ministers approve Commission's strategy for partnership
with China
[02] Conference "Natura 2000 and people : a partnership"
[03] Franz Fischler : "The environment must become the key to
multifunctional agriculture"
[04] Commission examines how to improve the efficiency of public transport
through better regulation
[01] EU foreign ministers approve Commission's strategy for partnership
with China
European Union (EU) foreign ministers meeting in Luxembourg today gave
their approval to the Commission's new Communication on China, which
provides for closer engagement and co-operation than ever before between
China and the EU. The Communication is a wide-ranging reappraisal of EU-
China relations which reflects China's growing economic and political
importance in the world. It includes concrete measures to support China's
economic integration into the global economy, to reinforce its economic and
social reforms and to encourage its development into a more open society
based on the rule of law. It envisages a better co-ordination of EU policy
instruments - political dialogue, trade, economic co-operation and human
rights policy, coupled with closer co-operation with other international
lending bodies and with individual Member States - which will enable EU
funding to go further.
[02] Conference "Natura 2000 and people : a partnership"
The European Commission and the United Kingdom Presidency of the Council co-
host a Conference in Bath, in the south-west of England, on 29 to 30 June
1998. It will be opened by Michael Meacher, UK Minister of the Environment,
and Ritt Bjerregaard, Commissioner for the Environment. The objective of
this Conference is to stimulate progress into the creation of the Natura
2000 network of protected sites, which is one of the central pillars of the
European Union's nature protection measures.
[03] Franz Fischler : "The environment must become the key to
multifunctional agriculture"
In his keynote speech at the Natura 2000 Conference in Bath European
Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural development, Franz Fischler,
addressed the relationship between agriculture and environmental protection
: "Fact is that - as in other sectors - modern technology and related
profit considerations have had their downside in terms of environmental
consequences." Mr Fischler stressed considerable reductions of fertilizer
use as an important success of 1992 Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) reform,
but pointed out that this was only the beginning of an evolution : "The
environment must progressively become the key to a multifunctional
agriculture". Mr Fischler drew the attention to the inclusion of
environmentally sensitive areas into the less favoured area scheme within
Agenda 2000. Furthermore, a new horizontal regulation will oblige Member
States to link payments under the CAP to environmental requirements. "We
must convince farmers and society that farming is becoming more and more an
ecological activity per se. Consequently, farmers have to be paid
adequately for the services they provide to society", he concluded.
[04] Commission examines how to improve the efficiency of public transport
through better regulation
At a seminar of representatives of Member State transport ministries, local
authorities and public transport bodies the European Commission today
examined ways of improving the efficiency and effectiveness of public
transport systems through regulatory change. Neil Kinnock, Commissioner
responsible for Transport Policy, said it was important to strike the right
balance between the role of the European Union in defining the regulatory
framework and the principle of subsidiarity. But he said : "Regular users
of public transport need stable service patterns, integrated information
and ticketing systems, and networks of routes with co-ordinated timetables.
That means that the Union should continue to recognise the role of
exclusive rights in public transport - even if some operators would prefer
markets with completely free entry."
MIDDAY EXPRESS
From EUROPA, the European Commission Server at http://europa.eu.int/
© ECSC - EC - EAEC, Brussels-Luxembourg, 1995, 1996
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